Do you have a new space or building that needs a better cell signal? After moving onto a new site or into a new home, being able to conduct and carry out calls falls high on many people's lists.
Cell phone signal boosters solve many connectivity problems, providing strong, fast, and quality connections. They capture nearby signals, boost them, and remit the radio waves to your designated area, improving your signal and helping your phone send data to and from cell towers with minimal obstacles. Adding a cell booster system layout to your move-in checklist ensures that you can easily and effortlessly contact others once you're settled in and occupy your new space. Here are some factors to consider when designing a cell booster system.
Starting Requirements
To find out the best equipment for your signal needs, you first need to gather some information. Knowing what you're working with makes it easier to match you up with the best antennas, amplifiers, and solutions to any potential interrupters that affect your signal. Conducting a site survey provides you with essential data, including the following.
Existing Signal Strength
As the first law of thermodynamics points out, energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Cell signals work with the energy of radio waves traveling between cellphones to cell towers. Therefore, signal boosters can't create a signal in dead zones. They can only work with existing signals passing nearby. Finding the nearest signal source and its properties helps you determine the amount of power you need to amplify the signal to meet your connection requirements and provide you with stronger and quality signals within your space. There are numerous ways to discover your current signal range and its strength, from phone apps to specific tracking radars.
Exterior Dimensions
Gaining the dimension of your exterior gives you an idea of placement options for your outdoor antenna. Once you've located the nearest cell tower, you want your outdoor antenna placed in the best line of sight with the tower. Knowing the amount of space and the location of potential antenna spots allows you to optimize your booster system and increases your antenna's chances of capturing radio waves.
Potential and Existing Cable Penetration
Some booster systems require cables to connect the outdoor antenna with the indoor components. Depending on your interior and exterior equipment placements, the cables might need to be threaded through the building. In compliance with building and fire safety codes, cable penetration comes with specific protocols to follow.
Building Blueprints
Like knowing your exterior dimensions and existing cable penetration systems, your building's blueprints help you find the optimal places to install your system. It also provides you with possible coverage ranges, further aiding you in determining the best antennas and frequencies that match your space and needs.
Interior Wall Materials
Numerous types of building materials interfere with your cell signals. Since radio waves travel in frequencies, certain densities absorb or detract the waves as they travel to and from cell towers, phones, and antennas. The stronger and higher your signal frequencies, the more likely they will pass through most obstacles in their passageway. Knowing your building's wall and structural materials determines the type of amplification you need and potential signal interceptors. Common building materials that block, weaken, or detract signals include fiberglass, drywall, solid wood, tin, copper, and aluminum.
Signal Booster Design Plans
Once you collect the necessary information you're working with, you can then find the right components to build your booster system. Signal boosters consist of three major components: an outdoor antenna, an indoor antenna, and an amplifier.
Signal Range and Amplifier
Matching the best fit antenna for your ideal signal requirements depends on your expected signal range and coverage area. Calculating your signal coverage includes subtracting your existing incoming signal frequencies with your system loss (the amount of energy lost through cables, splitters, and adapters), added to the total output gain you'll receive from your antenna and booster choice. It is also good to note that some antennas only work with certain frequency ranges, further influencing the type of amplifier and antennas you select for your system.
Indoor Antenna
There are various types of antennas to use with cellular boosters. Indoor antennas are the antennas that will transmit the boosted signal into your desired space. Different indoor antennas offer varying coverage ranges and directional signal casts. Depending on the number of rooms and floors you want to cover and the square footage of your space, certain antennas work better for your building than others. As mentioned above, some antennas require specific compatible frequency levels to work, affecting your choices and system design.
Outdoor Antenna
Outdoor antennas capture nearby signals from network towers. They vary in their signal cast range and offer more durability than indoor antennas to withstand their outdoor atmospheres. The two main antenna casts include omnidirectional and directional. Directional signal passages are often compared to the beam of a flashlight. They spread and collect radio waves that pass into their direct, straightforward tunnel of sight traveling in one direction, or back and forth. On the other hand, omnidirectional antennas collect and distribute frequencies in all directions, covering a broader area but often shorter distances than directional antennas.
Installation Placement
The last part of your booster system design layout is choosing installation placements. Optimizing antenna placements for indoor and outdoor units include avoiding nearby interceptors like specific building materials or natural barriers like dense forests and mountains. The best spot for your antennas will also need to be easily accessible for easy and efficient maintenance. Outdoor antennas function best in the direct line of sight of towers, increasing their chances of connectivity and capturing. Ideal indoor antenna installation locations include mounts that maximize the range and distribution coverage of the antenna's capabilities. Unlike antennas and cables, placing amplifiers includes more flexibility with easy access to both antennas as the only requirement because they don't need specific mounting.
Designing a cell phone signal booster for offices varies in requirements, from office location to building type, affecting your booster's design plan. Choosing to design your own system versus investing in a kit offers a range of pros and cons. Some people prefer to individualize their entire booster system, maximizing their components' compatibility with their specific situation, while others prefer a quick and easy-to-install system. Taking into account the different factors to consider when designing a cell booster system helps you build the best arrangement for your signal needs and new office space. Plus, it can also help you find the best-customized booster kit for your needs.
WE CAN HELP
If you are looking to design a signal booster system for 15,000 sq. ft. or larger, we can help. SureCallBoosters.ca provides free design services for any commercial application. To get started, please send an email so sales@surecallboosters.ca or call 1-888-389-5799.
